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Monday, September 28, 2015

London, England, 21 September 2015 - Before he left for the day’s other engagements this morning, His Holiness the Dalai Lama gave an interview to Christiane Amanpour of CNN. She began by asking: “What are you trying to do here?” and he replied:

“What’s important is that all human beings, wherever they are, whether they are rich or poor, educated or uneducated, have a right to live a happy life. Many think that happiness is to be found outside ourselves in material things, but actually happiness is something that comes from within. So I try to present the importance of inner values not on the basis of religious quotations, but by taking a secular approach based on scientific findings and common sense.

Ms Amanpour remarked that China is changing because of its rapidly developing economy and yet the authorities still refer to His Holiness as a ‘splittist’. He told her that Tibetans had not been seeking independence since 1974 and everybody knows that. She mentioned concern about who will succeed him. He replied that as far as Tibetan Buddhism is concerned the 10,000 monks and nuns who are studying and practising today will be able to preserve it. He made the point that the Buddha’s teaching has survived for 2600 years without there being a recognised reincarnation of the Buddha. He conceded that while he might be the last Dalai Lama, he may yet appoint a successor from among qualified lamas before he goes.

Asked how he sees the persecution of Rohingyas in Burma His Holiness said: “It’s very sad. I have appealed to Burmese Buddhists to stop and think. When they feel angry or resentful of these people, remember the face of the Buddha. I believe that if the Buddha were there, he would offer the Rohingyas his protection.”

Finally, noting that President Xi Jinping will shortly be visiting the USA and the UK, Ms Amanpour wanted to know what His Holiness would say to him if he had the opportunity to do so. He answered:

“Perhaps I’d say that that although historically we were an independent country, as records of the 7th to 9th centuries show, we are not seeking independence now. We can benefit from the development we get as part of the People’s Republic of China, but we must be able to preserve our language, culture and Buddhist traditions. I’d remind him that last year in Paris and Delhi he said that Buddhism plays an important role in Chinese culture. Buddhist values can be of help at a time when the injustice and corruption he seeks to contain are widespread.”

Arriving at the House of Lords to attend an Interfaith Meeting organized by the Buddhist Society, His Holiness was welcomed by Baroness Caroline Cox and Desmond Biddulph, the Society’s President. They escorted him through the grand halls to the meeting, which was attended by Christians, Muslims, Buddhists and Hindus of various denominations and a Sikh.

Baroness Cox amused everyone when she introduced herself as a nurse and social scientist by profession and a Baroness by astonishment. Remarking that she was the first Baroness she’d ever met, she added that she realized that the role gave her a voice to use on behalf of those who have no voice. Desmond Biddulph told the gathering that His Holiness is the Patron of the Buddhist Society and that this was an opportunity to celebrate his 80th birthday and the Society’s 90th anniversary. He said that one of His Holiness’s requests had been that, as Buddhists, members of the Society should reach out to others. He invited His Holiness to address the gathering, which he did.

“It’s a great honour for me to be sitting here with spiritual brothers and sisters of various traditions. In too many places today it seems religious and nationalistic feelings are giving rise to terrible conflicts. We have to find ways to bring peace. This is something that those of us who are religious have to do. Meetings like this are an opportunity to build and nurture friendship and trust among us.

“There is an impression in many people’s minds these days that Muslims are especially militant. However, we have to remember that there are militant Christians, Hindus, Sikhs, Jews and Buddhists too. The Muslim community that lived in Tibet were a very peaceful community and meeting them in exile I am reminded of the pure Lhasa dialect they still speak.

“Muslim friends have told me that if you shed blood you are no longer a genuine Muslim and that Muslims have a commitment to respect all the creatures of Allah. They also tell me that the word ‘jihad’ is misunderstood. It doesn’t have anything to do with fighting other people, but refers to combating disturbing emotions within yourself.”

The Archbishop of York, Dr John Sentamu spoke of growing up in Uganda with two Muslim children from Zanzibar. His father took them in when their own parents died in a fire and he was unable to trace any other relatives. Although theirs was a Christian family, his father arranged for these two children to attend a mosque on Fridays. The Archbishop reported that in a similar spirit he has spoken in the House of Lords of the need to encourage the Chinese authorities to acknowledge and respect His Holiness the Dalai Lama as a spiritual leader. He said he feels it’s important to remember, “I am not my brother’s keeper, I am my brother’s brother.”

Archbishop Kevin McDonald conveyed greetings to His Holiness and members of the gathering from Cardinal Vincent Nichols, leader of the Roman Catholic Church in the United Kingdom. He also recalled serving in the Vatican when Pope John Paul II convened the ground-breaking interfaith gathering in Assisi in 1986 that His Holiness and Archbishop Robert Runcie had attended.

Baroness Berridge, Chair of the All Party Group on International Religious Freedom, who had just returned from the USA, mentioned her concern for persecuted Muslims and Christians in Burma and elsewhere. She said that those in public life have a responsibility to work for rights for all.

Chime Rinpoche took the opportunity simply to say thank you to His Holiness for all he has done.

The Bishop of Coventry, Christopher Cocksworth, remarked that violence is never of any help and that religious leaders need to make this clear their various governments. He pointed out that while there is public horror at the violence in Syria and Iraq, last week saw a great arms show in the UK. He said it seems there is still too great a sense that the use of military force is the way to solve problems, but in fact in the long run words are more effective than bullets. The meeting as a whole expressed dismay at the way violence continues and a determination to work for dialogue.

In his closing remarks, His Holiness repeated what he often says, that love and compassion are what bring people together, while anger and suspicion push them apart. He noted that religious people have their own different paths, each of which is worthy of respect. He said the common purpose of different kinds of food is to fill our stomachs, but it would be foolish to say, “I like to eat this food, therefore you should eat it too!”

He drew attention to three aspects of religious tradition. The religious aspect concerns the common practice of love and compassion, tolerance and self-discipline. While philosophical views may be quite different, they are all dedicated to the same goal of reinforcing the practice of love. However, he said, there may also be cultural aspects of religious tradition, like caste discrimination, that are no longer relevant and should be changed. He said he encourages religious leaders to speak out about these things whenever they can. The meeting adjourned for lunch in the Strangers’ Dining Room of the House of Commons.

In the afternoon, an enthusiastic and friendly audience of more than 2000 awaited His Holiness’s arrival at the Lyceum theatre. He was met at the stage door by his old friend Lord Richard Layard, who with Director of Action for Happiness, Mark Williamson, escorted him to the stage. They were received with resounding cheers and applause. Dr Williams explained that a new course of training was being launched today on World Peace Day, called Exploring What Matters. He said that it is ever more important to bring people together to think about their lives and to help them make their lives happier.

He invited Jasmine Hodge-Lake to the stage to tell her story. She explained that following an accident that left her injured and in pain, she had become depressed. Attending an Action for Happiness talk helped her understand she could relate differently to her pain. She then took the pilot Action for Happiness course that helped her realize how she could bring hope back into her life and help others. She said:

“I learned how helping others you can help yourself. I’m a different person now to the one I was before the Action for Happiness course. I realized I could be the change I wanted to see.”

Adrian Bethune, a teacher at John Stainer Community Primary School told of becoming disillusioned with teaching until he also took the course. It helped him understand how he could do his work more positively and introduce changes in the classroom. He began to discuss with his students how the mind and brain work based on insights from neuroscience. He rebranded an anti-bullying programme as ‘it’s cool to be kind.’ On Fridays he asked the students to think back and choose three good things they’d done that week. He said teacher and students have become much happier about coming to school.

Prof Layard then opened a conversation with His Holiness, who is Action for Happiness’s Patron. He asked him how we can have more happiness, more peace in our hearts and His Holiness replied:

“Peace means no disturbance, no danger. It relates to our mental attitude. If we have a calm mind, obstacles will be less disruptive. The important thing is to realize that ultimately peace of mind is within us, it takes a warm heart and using our intelligence. People sometimes think warm heartedness, compassion and love are religious topics; they are actually factors for our survival. If we don’t take steps to reinforce these qualities now, the 21st century will also end up being an era of violence like the 20th century. We can’t expect change if we don’t take action. Prayer is not sufficient; we have to take responsibility ourselves. Problems created by human beings have to be solved by human beings.”

When Prof Layard asked how we can improve our relations with each other, His Holiness told him that as social animals people have to overcome their old habit of seeing others in terms of ‘us’ and ‘them’, which just solidifies division. He said we have to see that we are all just human beings and that in our globalized world we have to deal with a global economy and problems like climate change whose effects ignore national boundaries. We have instead to cultivate a sense of global responsibility that sees everyone as ‘us’.

His Holiness explained how discussions with scientists over 30 years had contributed to an understanding of a curriculum of secular ethics in education from kindergarten to university. Part of this involves working with a map of emotions to ensure that the physical hygiene we need to be healthy is accompanied by emotional hygiene.

He answered several questions from the audience, observing that the natural seed of compassion we all possess can, if we use our intelligence, be extended to encompass even our enemies. He acknowledged the need to look after our own interests, but explained that the foolish way to do this is to focus on ourselves alone. A wiser sense of self-interest takes others’ interests into account as well. Asked what one thing people could do to make the world a happier place he answered: “Cultivate affection.”

As the discussions came to a close and His Holiness waved goodbye to the audience they responded with affectionate cheers.

Once the curtain had dropped on the stage, the BBC’s Mark Easton asked His Holiness about the launch of Exploring What Matters and Action for Happiness. He suggested that some were cynical that such moves could be effective. His Holiness retorted that such resistance is just old-fashioned thinking. Warm-heartedness can make individuals, families, communities and even countries happier. He said:

“Even the creation of the EU was essentially an act of compassion. And look, I'm convinced more positive reporting by the BBC and the media, just as you are doing now, can really help make people happier.”

In this blog I am going to help you the reader understand what paranormal people like to claim as a “residual haunting” to be real. The haunting is real, however, in order to understand why it is real you need to read the blog “My Haunted Home, the Truth Revealed” so you can understand why this blog which is about residual haunting’s are FALSE. From the blog ‘My Haunted Home’ I explained who it is doing this activity and why they (DEMONS) are doing this to begin with the home, house or building.

As a refresher so to speak the 3 main reasons a house, home or building is full of activity is: (1) The former owners were not righteous people thus they engaged within the occult realm giving the Demonic rights to that previous family as well as the residence (i.e. house/home) (2) Sin is present in the lives of the people who now reside within the walls of the house or home (3) Cursed objects are present within the walls of the house or home.

So let me expand your thought pattern upon this subject even more. In the Holy Bible there are very specific verses which explain as well as nullify the existence of lingering around (Ghosts) after you die. The very word of God stands as truth and debunks what one can consider a ‘ghost’ as well as a ‘residual haunting’. When you discuss this type of activity you have to understand this is a lot of falseness with a little truth mixed in.

The truth is that the Demonic are involved pulling strings with some type of intelligence behind this type of torment. Realize that the Demons are Fallen Angels who are highly intelligent about mankind. They know more about man than man himself due to the length of time existing since creation. Now people take and mix into this whole mess of a ‘residual haunting’ a lot of falseness that a person who passes on is doing this act over and over again at the same time or in a similar matter/pattern. The truth is this, it is the Fallen Angels doing this activity as they are the intelligent ones drawing a person to become more curious.

So I shall explain to you what the very word of God states regarding ‘residual hauntings’ which are false and cannot exist. We find the very answers from the Holy Bible to nullify a ‘residual haunting’. The first one is taken from the Book of Job. Job 7: 9-10 KJV states the following “As the cloud is consumed and vanisheth away: so he that goeth down to the grave shall come up no more. He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his place know him anymore.”

Who is the He this verse is referring to? This is man, woman or child. Goeth to the grave – meaning you die – this is final no more can you come up (even as a lingering spirit – i.e. Ghost). Follow this with the next part – he shall return no more to his house – Why because you have now faced judgment from God – awarded Heaven or cast into Hell. Lastly, his place (object) shall not know him anymore – meaning one cannot get out of Heaven or Hell to come back, hang around in your once known earthly realm which violates the authority of God. As I like to say it like this – you think you have more power than God? Really, do tell me how?

Now to further add even more support here is what is said in other verses within the Holy Bible about residual hauntings as well as the thought process of having Ghosts. Further in the book of Job we find these words in chapter 14:10-12 KJV states “But man dieth, and wasteth away: yea, man giveth up the ghost, and where is he? As the waters fail from the sea, and the flood decayeth and drieth up: So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep.”

Once again we see that when you die you cannot rise up, go wander about (like a ghost) and reside in your once living paradigm of the earthly realm that you had. If that is the case then you have more power than God and thus Satan and all forces of evil would fear you!

So to further explain why ‘residual hauntings’ cannot be from once living humans let me examine these Holy Scripture found in the book of Ecclesiastes 9:5-6 KJV which states “For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not anything, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion forever in anything that is done under the sun.”

So as you can see this is a double ‘whammy’ against both ‘ghosts’ and the aspects of a ‘residual haunting’ from this verse above. As you can read and now understand when you die you have nothing to do under the ‘sun’ anymore. No more day or night, it is either now Heaven or Hell for your soul.

So why is then that many of the so called experts in the “paranormal realm” ascertain that these activities are occurring is because ‘they are simply lost souls’ wanting to hang around or are angry because you ‘remodeled their home’. I recently viewed something online which this person stated you linger around because you worked your ‘butt off’ for what you had and now these people are changing everything within your home.

NO, the new home owners can do what they want because you are no longer here. If you want to continue to believe in ‘residual hauntings’ of a home because of the spirit being upset with the new homeowners, then let’s discuss all these ‘haunted cars’ that are on the roads. A majority of everyone has or had a vehicle within the last 50 years. Let’s examine those cars who people took very good care of and since they are dead would they not too be “upset” because someone else is driving “their” vehicle?

So as a reader you’re going to tell me a car is different than a home? You’re going to say you are comparing apples to oranges. So am I really? An object is an object and a possession is a possession. If you owned it (i.e. a car/truck) then why are you (as a ghost) not going after those who are now driving your former mode of transportation?

How many stories are going around with all these vehicles having a haunting? Very few and as a matter of fact, and I am willing to bet less than 1%. More activity of ‘residual hauntings’ are taking place within the walls of the home. The answer why lies with what has taken place inside the home prior has much more strength for evil. Many more SINS were committed inside the walls of the home/house than inside of a vehicle.